21 Recipes for Pupsicles {Yep, Popsicles for Dogs!}

We all remember the childhood joy of cooling down with a Popsicle on a hot summer day. Our dogs also love a frozen dog treat–and it’s super easy to make popsicles for dogs–just call them PUPsicles! Whatever shape you make them in, frozen dog treats are inexpensive and quick to make, and sure to have your dog’s tail wagging!

Like many desserts, these pupsicle recipes can be as simple—or as fancy—as you choose. Best of all: your dog doesn’t care if the treats look pretty or not!

Unlike human ice cream treats, pupsicles aren’t always sweet. They may be sweetened with fresh fruits but your dog will also enjoy savory treats made with chicken broth or ice cubes made with bits of his favorite meats included.

Can Dogs Eat Frozen Treats?

As you know, dogs primarily regulate their body temperature through panting—a natural activity that removes heat by passing cool air over the moist surfaces of the tongue and lungs.

Frozen dog treats, dog ice cream and popsicles for dogs are a fun and tasty way to help your dog cool down even faster. Pupsicles provide some much-needed hydration on hot summer days.

And, yes, in spite of an Internet rumor that spread a few years ago, dogs can also eat ice cubes! We’ve got an entire post written by veterinarian Dr. Audrey Harvey on dogs eating ice cubes and drinking ice water.

What You Need to Make Homemade Dog Popsicles

Here’s a list of the basic items you probably already have around your home that you can use to create these easy puppy popsicles:

Silicone molds.

We have silicone molds that make fancy ice cubes, perfect for bite-sized treats and cupcake-sized molds that are great for ice creams and pupsicles.

Ice cube trays.

No silicone molds on hand? Inexpensive ice cube trays work great! They’re not flexible like silicone molds but for treats that freeze completely, they’ll work great.

Small paper cups.

Great for making an individual-sized treat. Peel off the cup after freezing.

Pop molds.

Commercial molds make it easy to make pops complete with a plastic handle. You’ll find a wide variety of styles, from classic to mini to round pops.

Dog chews.

Drop your dog’s favorite long chew (or dental chew), in the mix to create a “handle” for the pupsicle. Your dog may not use the handle but it will make it easy for you to distribute the treat (and he’ll love it!)

Strips of homemade chicken jerky or liver jerky work great, too, as do dehydrated chicken feet, lamb trachea, small esophagus strips and more. A half slice of fried or baked turkey bacon will work as a great handle, too!

Turkey baster.

If you’d like to make bite-sized treats, a turkey baster is an easy way to get the mixture into the small trays! Another easy option is to put the mixture in a zippered plastic bag and snip out one corner.

Cookie sheet.

You won’t need the cookie sheet for cooking–but it makes it much easier to get your trays and cups in and out of the freezer without spilling!

Can Dogs Eat Popsicles?

You don’t want to share your commercially-made Popsicle or ice treat with your dog because those desserts contain sugar. Make your dog his or her own pupsicle without the sugar (and keep the Popsicle to enjoy yourself!)

What Kind of Yogurt Should I Use to Make Popsicles for Dogs?

You’ll notice than many of the frozen dog treat recipes below feature yogurt. You’ll want to stick with plain, unflavored yogurt for your dog’s frozen treats.

You can also opt to make dog popsicles using regular yogurt or Greek yogurt, which is thicker and has more protein than regular yogurt.

Be sure to check the ingredients list of any yogurt you’d like to feed your dog. Do NOT use yogurt that contains Xylitol, an artificial sweetener that is very toxic to dogs.

Easy Pupsicle Recipes

1. Peanut Butter Pupsicle for Dogs

To help cool canines, Southern California’s Just Food For Dogs makes Pupsicles with USDA Certified human quality ingredients, and with absolutely no preservatives, no added colors, no by-products or any other additives–and they shared their recipe!

The frozen “sicle” part of the treat is yogurt based and includes all natural ingredients. The “sticks” are completely edible–they’re dog treats!

2. Frozen Beef Pupsicle

Or does your dog prefer savory treats instead of sweet treats? In that case, how about a frozen beef treat?

Again, this treat also uses a dog treat as a “popsicle stick.”

You can use molds to create this frozen treat or even paper cups; just peel away the paper cup once the treat is frozen!

3. Kiwi Coconut Pops

Ingredients

• 2 kiwis
• 1 cup coconut water

Using a paring knife, peel kiwis. Quarter and drop into your blender. Add coconut water. Blend until smooth then pour into molds.

You can make this recipe even more special by dropping a slice of kiwi into your mold, if you’re using one that’s miniature cup size or larger (like a silicone cupcake mold).

If you are using a cup as mold, make the treat extra special by adding a dog chew handle!

4. Beef Pupsicles for Dogs made with Hamburger Meat

Hamburger meat, frozen peas and water come together to create this tasty treat which can be portioned according to your dog’s size. Recipe: Beef Pupsicles for Dogs

5. Molasses Pops Recipe

Blackstrap molasses is a great ingredient for dogs—but if you’re not a big fan of molasses, cut this back to just ½ a teaspoon or omit. You can also substitute honey as a sweetener if you prefer.

• 1 cup plain yogurt
• ½ cup strawberry puree
• ¼ cup blackberry puree
• 1 teaspoon blackstrap molasses (optional)

Combine all ingredients completely then pour into molds and freeze. Because this is a fairly thick mixture, it makes a fun treat to add a dog chew or treat as a little “handle” for your dog.

We puree a container of strawberries at a time, hulling them and tossing them in the blender. It’s quick and easy to use the puree in a variety of ingredients and freeze the remainder for a future treat!

6. Chicken Broth Pupsicles

Our recipe for chicken brothsicles features both broth and chopped chicken. If you are rush, you can also just freeze chicken broth; either make your own chicken broth or purchase low-sodium chicken broth.

However you choose to make it, all these are good options for avoiding dehydration, a scary, and sometimes life-threatening, condition. Dogs need almost one ounce of water per pound of their body weight daily. Your eight-pound Papillon needs one cup while your eighty-pound Lab will need 2-1/2 quarts per day and more if he’s hot or active. Recipe: Chicken Broth Pupsicles

7. Frozen Fruit Ice Pops for Dogs

This treat is super simple and inexpensive to make using fruits you have on hand. NOTE: You can use any fruits you like but do NOT use grapes (or raisins) as they cause health problems in many dogs.

This ice pops for dogs recipe is sweetened with Blackstrap molasses, rich with potassium and minerals; many swear by it for alleviating their dog’s symptoms of arthritis.

Avoid too much molasses in your dog’s diet or it can cause digestive upset. Recipe: Frozen Fruit Ice Pops for Dogs

8. Peanut Butter and Fruit Ice

This easy to create frozen dessert is created in a ring (although you could also use small cups or a popsicle mold for smaller portions). Peanut butter and chopped fruit join healthy flax seeds for this icy treat. Recipe: Peanut Butter and Fruit Ice

9. Chicken Foot Frozen Treats

These frozen treats were created by Bentley’s Pet Stuff as spooky Halloween treats for dogs–but with their frozen goodness, they make a great summer pupsicle as well.

Made with frozen goat’s milk, the eye catching frozen treats feature a chicken foot as the “handle” of the pupsicle–a little extra crunch that dogs will love! Recipe: Chicken Foot Frozen Treats

10. Chicken Liver Sicles

OK, this might not be the most fragrant frozen treat to make but it’s sure popular with dogs! Created with the broth made by boiling chicken livers, this treat is quick and easy (and very inexpensive) to make. Recipe Chicken Liver Sicles

11. Pumpkin Ice Cream for Dogs

You don’t have to wait for autumn to make pumpkin ice cream for your dog! It’s flavorful–and healthy–and all you need is a can of pumpkin. The trick here is to always purchase plain canned pumpkin,never pumpkin pie filling which contains spices that won’t agree with your dog. Recipe for Pumpkin Ice Cream

12. Dirty Banana Bites for Dogs

• 1 banana
• ½ cup peanuts

Chop peanuts in blender or food processor.

Peel banana and cut into four pieces.

Roll banana slices in peanuts. Freeze on wax paper.

No peanuts on hand? You can also coat the banana slices in peanut butter. You can opt for creamy or chunky peanut butter–just be sure your peanut butter does NOT contain Xylitol–which is very toxic to dogs–in its ingredients list!

13. Strawberry Popsicle for Dogs

• ½ cup strawberry puree
• ½ cup plain yogurt

It doesn’t get much simpler than this! Mix and freeze. This recipe makes an easy base for modifying, too; substitute your dog’s favorite fruit for the strawberry, sweeten with a little honey, or add a dusting of crushed peanuts.

14. Peach Pops

• 4 ripe peaches
• 1 cup plain Yogurt

Peel peaches; discard skin and pits. Chop peaches and blend with yogurt. Scoop into ice cube tray and freeze.

15. Yogurt Dipped Frozen Fruit

• ½ cup plain yogurt
• 1 cup fruit (strawberries, raspberries, bananas)

Clean and core fruit. Dry.

Dip fruit in yogurt. Place on wax paper and freeze.

16. Mango Sorbet

Is your dog lactose intolerant? This creamy sorbet (which is good enough to share!) is a dairy free frozen dog treat thanks to use of almond milk! Recipe for Mango Sorbet for Dogs

17. Coconut Pops

Creamy coconut milk forms the base for this super easy treat. Add your favorite extras to the mix! I added blueberries to our treats but you can toss in a handful of any of your dog’s favorite fruits.

• 1 can (10 ounces) coconut milk

Shake coconut milk well before opening. Pour milk into trays or molds. If you like, sprinkle with coconut flakes or drop in berries. Freeze.

18. Layered Pops

This layered popsicle is pretty enough for dog parties! Serve your human friends with a plastic pop mold; remove from handled mold for canine enjoyment.

• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1 cut strawberry puree

Pour yogurt into molds or an ice cube, filling each mold halfway (a turkey baster makes this job easy). Gentle pour puree over yogurt. Freeze.

19. Coconut and Strawberry Swirls

You might just want to see if your dog will share these easy-to-make, non-dairy treats! Coconut and Strawberry Swirls Recipe

20. Peanut Butter and Banana Dog Ice Cream

This recipe is one of our most popular and has been picked up by many magazines. It coudn’t be easier to make! Recipe for PB and Banana Ice Cream

21. Frozen Watermelon Dog Treats

Combine watermelon with your dog’s favorite treats for this taste of summer! Recipe for Frozen Watermelon Dog Treats

Pin it to remember these Recipes for Dog Popsicles!